I've Come All This Way ...

Nancy, 61, Annapolis, MD

 

Disney World has always been one of my "laughing places" since my children were little. The first time we went, our oldest daughter, Tammie, was seven and our middle daughter, Lisa, was four. Of course, we had the big build-up of what we were going to do and who we were going to see and their excitement just grew and grew.

The day finally arrived. We walked into the Magic Kingdom for the very first time. There stood Main Street and Cinderella's Castle right in front of us. Mickey Mouse himself was walking in from a side entrance. My four-year-old let go of my hand and ran straight to him, hugging his legs as far as her little arms could reach, and said, "I've come all this way just to see you!"

This was a moment my husband and I (and probably Mickey himself) will never forget and it was the beginning of many beautiful memories of Disney World to come!

Family Lives on at Disneyland

CJ, 58, San Clemente, CA

 I can remember going to Disneyland for the first time around age six. Wearing my coonskin cap, I was selected to lead the band down Main Street, U.S.A. What an everlasting wow!

My family, with Grandma and Grandpa, saved and planned every year and returned on the third Wednesday of August every year from 1956. The excitement bubbled and exploded as the time grew nearer. It was easier to sleep the night before Christmas, than the night before Disneyland. It was a day the whole family spent together, something that never happened unless we were going to Disneyland. Quality time, enjoying each other's company, sharing each other's joy. Breakfast at Aunt Jemima's, dreaming and hiking on Tom Sawyer's Island. And, oh, those Autopia cars, getting to drive a car ... another wow. Each ride had its own memory, each Land its own experience with the family.

Then in the 1980s it was my time to be the mom, and take my kids to the Happiest Place on Earth. The excitement of taking them was as big and bold as it was when I was a kid. And the dream never got old, the experience never died.

Today my grandparents have passed on – my mom too. Nobody lives in the same home, not even in the same neighborhood. Disneyland remains the only place I can visit to relive the wonderful memories of my childhood. To smell the smells, and touch the places where we all had such good and endearing times together. When I miss them, I don't visit a cemetery, I visit Disneyland. It still brings a smile to my face, and I still get that twinge of excitement as I enter the Happiest Place on Earth. Thanks Disneyland!

Annual Trip to Disneyland!

Irene, 47, Los Angeles, CA

My parents worked very hard all year to make sure we (I was the oldest girl with three younger brothers) always made our annual trip to Disneyland every summer. Mom would wake us up early and dress us in outfits she bought especially for the occasion. We made sure lemonade on Main Street was always our first stop.

My fondest memory as a little girl was watching Mary Poppins with her umbrella move across the sky – I was amazed and completely convinced she was real. And who could forget the fireworks that lit up the sky or watching the parade and naming all the characters? At the end of the day, our last stop was browsing through the gift shops ... those wonderful memories will live on forever!

Seeing Walt at Disneyland

Yvonne, 51, Gardnerville, NC

Long ago when the world was a little different and I was just about 12 years old, my mother took my younger sister and me to Disneyland in California. We would be able to visit there often because we lived close enough, there was no such thing as freeway traffic and it was a great place to visit for a long day.

I recall walking into Disneyland, past the train station, and into the area where we would go to visit Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln – that attraction was always our first stop. One very special day, as we left the show and looked toward Main Street, there was a horse-drawn carriage coming toward us and Walt Disney was riding up on top with the driver and waving at the people passing by. It was one of the most exciting events in my entire life! He even waved directly at us! It will always remain in my memory. What a wonderful man with such a great unselfish vision!